Smuttynose Releases Straw-Barb Short Weiss and Scotch Ale

Smuttynose Brewing Co.’s rotating beer releases continue to
march on. First up, as part of the Short Batch series, is Straw-Barb Short
Weisse. Berliner Weiss is one of my favorite styles and this one features
strawberry and rhubarb. Here’s
more from the brewery’s release notes:

Straw-Barb Short
Weisse is the second Berliner Weiss-style beer Smuttynose has released. As the
name suggests, Berliner Weises are wheat beers brewed in Berlin and they’re
unique enough to have their own appellation d’origen controlee like Parma ham
and Trappist beers. At the Smuttynose mothership, we’re pretty well convinced
that these may be the most drinkable beers on the planet. They’re dry, low in
alcohol, and surprisingly tart. Berliner Weisses are highly carbonated, which
(supposedly) let Napoleon’s troops to call them, the “Champagne of the North. We’ve
added a really large amount of actual strawberries and rhubarb to the beer,
which adds an extra dimension to the refreshing lactic character.

I expect it will be hard to find Straw-Barb as just one 30
barrel batch was brewed.

Next up, from the Big Beer series, is Scotch Ale. This beer
features beechwood-smoked malt, which lends a softer smoke character than traditional
peat-smoked malt.In a interesting
twist, a portion of this beer was aged in wine barrels.Here are details from the brewery:

Like we did in 2012,
this year’s Smuttynose Scotch Ale, is a blend of non-barrel-aged and
barrel-aged beer. Many moons ago, (all the way back in March), we brewed a
small 30 barrel batch of Scotch Ale and put in in red wine barrels for about
six months, before being transferred into the main batch before bottling. It’s
just another nuance that makes our beer delicious and unique.

200 barrels of Scotch Ale were brewed, so you should have a
relatively easier time finding it. I'll sample both and will
share my tasting notes soon!